England’s dominance continued on the second day of the match at Lord’s, courtesy of spectacular performances by Ollie Pope and Ben Duckett, as well as a magnificent triple strike from Josh Tongue.
With a commanding lead of 255 runs, England asserted their authority after reducing Ireland to 97 for 3, having amassed an imposing total of 524 for 4.
After Tea, Ireland struck a blow when Andy McBrine bowled England captain Joe Root, shattering his stumps. Meanwhile, Pope, who resumed his innings on 197, quickly reached the milestone of a double century by launching McBrine for a six.
This achievement saw Pope break the longstanding record set by Gordon Greenidge, making it the fastest double century at Lord’s in nearly four decades. However, Pope’s aggressive approach led to his downfall, as he was stumped on the next delivery, prompting England to declare their innings.
In response, Ireland faced early setbacks, losing Peter Moor to a leg-before-wicket dismissal off Tongue’s first ball. Tongue struck again in his opening over, dismissing captain Andrew Balbirnie, who had fallen early in both innings. James McCollum suffered an unfortunate injury while attempting a pull shot and had to be taken off the field in considerable pain.
Despite these setbacks, Paul Stirling launched a counter-attack, reminiscent of his performance in the previous innings. He confidently dispatched deliveries from Matthew Potts and Tongue for boundaries, while Harry Tector joined in with aggressive stroke play.
Tector hit Tongue for a boundary and a six before falling victim to an outside edge caught by the wicketkeeper. Although initially given not out, England successfully overturned the decision with a review. Lorcan Tucker added a couple of boundaries, but Ireland’s batsmen focused on seeing out the remaining play without further damage.
Earlier in the day, Duckett made an impressive start, striking a boundary off the first ball he faced from Graham Hume. Pope, who was unbeaten on 29 overnight, adopted a cautious approach initially.
However, as the morning progressed, Duckett took the initiative and attacked the Irish bowlers, scoring at a rapid pace. He brought up the century partnership with Pope, hitting boundaries through mid-off and fine leg. Duckett soon reached his century with a flick to mid-wicket, while Pope also achieved a significant milestone, reaching his 12th Test fifty.
The English duo continued to dominate, capitalizing on the fuller lengths of the Irish bowlers. Both Curtis Campher and Fionn Hand were punished with a flurry of boundaries.
The scoring rate briefly slowed down after the drinks break, but Pope and Duckett resumed their onslaught against McBrine, finding the boundary with ease. Duckett’s aggression paid off, as he completed his remarkable 150, becoming the fastest player to reach this milestone at Lord’s.
England’s morning session was flawless, adding 173 runs without losing a wicket. Pope, resuming his innings after lunch on 97, brought up his century with a flick through mid-on. Duckett, on the other hand, took on McBrine, hitting him for two boundaries and a six, including a reverse sweep.
Unfortunately, Duckett’s innings were cut short when he played onto his stumps off Hume’s delivery. Ireland had a chance to dismiss Root soon after, but a slight inside edge saved the English captain. Despite wasting a review, Ireland struggled to contain the relentless Root and Pope. Root unleashed a barrage of sixes, while Pope took the attack to Campher.
Root’s aggressive approach paid off as he reached his half-century with a powerful boundary off Campher, while also reaching the milestone of 11,000 Test runs with a single off the last ball of the session.
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